redpinemountain.com

My Internet Angel

First a news flash. My turkey hen just hatched two poults so now we have two baby turkelts!!! They are the two in the forefront.

But today, I’d like to turn my attention to the power of the internet. We so often hear about the dark side of the internet but there’s more to it than horror stories. I would never have met Mountain Man nor come to live on Red Pine Mountain without the internet. This blog wouldn’t exist and without my blog, I would never have made so many wonderful friends who have enriched my life immeasurably.

And the other day, the internet provided me with an angel.

A few days ago, I was cleaning the barn when I thought something lodged in my eye. No big deal. A piece of dirt, one of those annoying no seeum bugs perhaps. I headed to the house and rinsed out my eye and thought I was done with it all. Yes, my eye felt a little strange but nothing major. I joined Mountain Man on our porch for our before dinner ritual of playing fetch with Logan while the other dogs lounge with us.

“Mountain Man, there sure are lots of bugs out here.” I started swatting at numerous black things in front of my eyes.

“What are you talking about? There’s no bugs out here.”

“Yes, there are. Look at them all.” Swat, swat, swat.

“You’re imaging them.” So I walked back inside and sure enough, the bugs followed me. I started to get the feeling something was wrong. Maybe something was still in my eye. I had a quiet evening and went to bed early sure that in the morning whatever was bothering my eye would have worked it’s way out. And it was better but there were still some annoying bugs floating by and at night tiny lightening flashes at the side of my eye. Not as frequently. I was on my way to getting better. Give it a couple of days and they would be gone. I’m not one to run to the doctor.

I posted on Facebook about my eye. Nothing major. Just said I’d missed a ride because of an eye injury. One of my friends answered my post telling me she was recovering from a serious eye injury. Almost immediately, I got an email from her.

How did I meet this friend, Maureen? Online of course; when I was a Facebook Eharmony mentor. We are the same age, have lots in common including German Shepherd Dogs and of course, Eharmony sweeties. She is an all around wonderful person. Another blessing Eharmony has given me.

In her email, Maureen described her serious eye problem telling me it happened when she was working in her garden. She also told me what the doctor found and the outcome as well. Her symptoms sounded eerily familiar to me so I shared my story with her and she told me to get to the doctor at once or there was a chance I could lose my vision in that eye. I did. I called an ophthalmologist and they gave me an immediate appointment.

Long story short (and sorry for the medical jargon), the vitreous fluid sac at the back of my eye has ruptured and is leaking fluid into the main part of my eye which is why I’m seeing bugs in front of my eye and lightening bolts off to the side of my vision. But because the sac has ruptured, I’m at risk for a detached retina for the next four weeks. I have to stay still; no riding, no running, no jarring of my head. I’m not even supposed to nod to agree as I always do with Mountain Man.

I guess I could be complaining about losing the few summer days we have here to inactivity but I’m not. I’m marveling at the power of the internet and the friendships that occur because of our online life.

Without Maureen’s push and without her sharing her story with me, I would never have gone to the doctor and just perhaps the retina would have detached as I went about my daily chores swatting at imaginary bugs.

My doctor informed me this problem is very common in nearsighted people over 50. So if you start to see bugs that don’t exist or lightening bolts start going off at the side of your vision, run, don’t walk to your ophthalmologist. And Maureen, thank you for being my internet angel. I wish you a speedy recovery as well.

Thank you all who have become my dear friends. You are blessings in my life.